接受真理，談何容易！ It’s Easy To Say I Accept The Truth!

接受真理，談何容易！（若7:1-2, 10, 25-30）

今天的福音再次印證了「確認偏誤」對人類的害處。反對耶穌的人為了證明自己的見解正確，便不斷尋找證明自己是正確的證據，即耶穌的「犯罪證據」；並以不合理的準則否定證明自己錯誤的事實。對於不足以定奪，模稜兩可的證據，他們便牽強地歸納為證明自己正確的證據…在耶穌治好胎生瞎子的神蹟中，他們的偏誤，表露無遺（若9）。在做學問方面，這些人是不學無術；在處世做人方面，這些人就是站在道德高位上的偽君子！不幸地，有「確認偏誤」的人，容納不了指出他們偏誤的人，並想盡辦法消滅那些說「皇帝沒有穿衣」的人！

我們今天知道耶穌基督是默西亞，但當代的人對默西亞有不同的期望，便對默西亞的身份，眾說紛紜。有人緬懷達味王朝的輝煌，便期望默西亞是達味的後裔，來應驗納堂的神諭（撒下7:12-16）。有些人祇期望一個好像波斯王居魯士一樣，能解放他們的默西亞（依45:1）。他們不會計較這位受傅者，有沒有達味的血統。所以，在今天的福音，我們讀到後者的見解，「當默西亞來時，卻沒有人知道他是那裡的。」（若7:27）

耶穌基督很努力地解釋給那些不知道默西亞是從那裡來的人，讓他們知道，是否達味的後裔並不重要，因為重要的，是預許的默西亞，其實是天主子，是出於天父，是天父所派遣來的：「是那真實者派遣我來的…我是出於祂，是祂派遣了我。」（7:28-29）所以不知道默西亞從那裡來的意見，可以說是正確的。可惜，正確的見解並沒有帶給他們救恩，何況是那些錯誤的，似是而非的見解呢？

耶穌基督又一次失敗了，因為祂的話，為那些陷入「確認偏誤」的群眾，並不能用來證明他們是正確的。所以這些群眾拒絕了耶穌，並且想捉住祂（7:30），消滅祂。
父啊！求祢幫助我們認識祢，唯一的真天主，和祢所派遣來的耶穌基督（17:3）。亞孟。
生命恩泉
圖片鳴謝：theguardian.com

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It’s Easy To Say I Accept The Truth! (John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30)

The gospel passage today shows once more how much harm “confirmation bias” can do to humanity. In order to prove themselves right, people who opposed Jesus searched tirelessly for evidence to prove themselves right. That is to say, they collected evidences which incriminated Jesus. Furthermore, they set up unreasonable criteria to refute evidences that proved them wrong. For ambiguous evidences, they interpreted them as supportive … All of these characteristics are clearly shown in the story of Jesus healing a born-blind (John 9). In academic circles, they are undisciplined. In daily life, they are hypocrites standing on moral high ground! Regrettably, those confirmation biased people are intolerant towards people who dare to point out their mistakes. They would try their best to silence those who dared to say that “the emperor is naked”!

Today, we know that Jesus Christ is the Messiah. But contemporary Jews had different expectations and they disagreed on what made a person the Messiah. Some were nostalgic about the glory of Davidic dynasty and anticipated the Messiah to be an offspring of David to fulfil Nathan’s oracle (2 Samuel 7:12-16). Others expected a liberator like the Persian King Cyrus (Isaiah 45:1). It didn’t bother them whether the Messiah came from the Davidic blood-line or not. Today, we read of the opinions of the latter case. “When the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” (John 7:27)

Jesus Christ tried very hard to explain to those who didn’t know where the Messiah would come that it was not essential for the Messiah to be an offspring of David. What’s important is to know that the Messiah is the Son of God sent by the Father, “The one who sent me … is true … I am from Him, and He sent me.” (7:28-29). Therefore, they were right in not knowing from where the Messiah came. Unfortunately, a correct opinion did not bring them salvation. What would happen to contradictions or fallacies?

Jesus failed once more because His words, fallen on the deaf ears of people with confirmation bias, could not prove them right. These people who rejected Jesus would only want to arrest Him (7:30) and neutralize Him.
Heavenly Father! Help us know You, the only true God, and the one whom You sent, Jesus Christ (17:3). Amen.